The Sorrow of Youth

Pei Jingyu vs. Pei Luoyuan

A long, long story, a gradual-growth tale, and a rambling account of everyday life raising a child, from the ordinary to the extraordinary.

The serious blurb:

It had all happened so many years ago. They had known each other for so long, so long that they had forgotten the passage of time and the reasons they began.

The only thing they remembered was that the snow and wind had raged that year, war had broken out everywhere, and they had met amid the flames of battle. From then on, the child nobody wanted had a home.

Peace never lasted long, and they had never let go of their obsessions. They had paid too high a price along the way, a price they could never take back.

As a child:

Pei Jingyu gazed at that young face. "You'll have everything other people have, and even more than they do."

Little Luoyuan held out a rose to him. "Big Brother, this is for you."

Pei Jingyu tenderly cradled his hand, pricked by thorns. "How has Jiang Wanli been looking after you? Where is she? Does it hurt?"

Little Luoyuan smiled happily. "It doesn't hurt."

As a teenager:

Pei Luoyuan: "Do you really have to fight them to the bitter end? Do you know what will happen if you keep this up?"

Pei Jingyu refused to meet his eyes. "They owe me, and they'll pay me back every last bit. I won't let them go."

At the coming-of-age ceremony:

Pei Luoyuan lowered his gaze. "You gave me my life. Whatever you want, I'll help you get it, even if it costs me my life."

Later:

With his hands covered in blood and on the verge of a breakdown, Pei Luoyuan cried, "Look at me now! How am I even human anymore? I'm a monster! Let me go! For the sake of all these years we've shared, can't you let me go?"

Pei Jingyu was heartbroken. He knelt beside Pei Luoyuan. "I was wrong. It was my fault. Don't leave me."

Theme: Cherish the present